Apparatus for operating upon parts of uppers of shoes



J. FOSSA May 15, 1934.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES Filed May 14, 1950 14 Sheets-Sheet 1 m who @h 2 7 A WA?! J. FOSSA May 15, 1934.

Filed May 14, 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet 2 May 1-5, 1934. J. FossA APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES Filed May 14, 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet 5 /NVENTL7R J. FOSSA May 15, 1934.

Filed May 14, 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet 4 igz L.

J. FOSSA 1,958,536

Filed May 14-, 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet 5 May 15, 1934.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES May 15, 1934. .1. FossA 1,958,536

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES F iled May 14, 1950 14 Sheets-Sheet 6 Fig: 8.

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APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UrON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES May 15, 1934.

14 Sheets-Sheet 7 Filed May 14, 1950 IIll l l l l l l I I LD May 15, 1934. J, oss 1,958,536

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES Filed May 14, 1950 14 Sheets-Sheet 8 May 15, 1934. J. FossA 1,958,536

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES Filed May 14, 1930 J. FOSSA May l5, 1934.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES Filed May 14, 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet 10 /NVENTUR J FOSSA May 15, 1934.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES Filed May 14, 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet ll /NVENTUF\' J. FOSSA May 15, 1934.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES R 7 U I. N E v m a: I 5 l 7 2 no w B0 m 3 O. m 1 3 G I 11w 2 3 I: w M. 0 mr o b 3 a Q% R. I 2 Q o 7 MW l I4 0 May 15, 1934. J. FOSSA 1,958,536

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OFUPPERS OF SHOES Filed May 14, 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet 13 J. FOSSA May 15, 1934.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES 1930 14 Sheets-Sheet 14 Filed May 14 a nun G Patented May 15, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOR OPERATING UPON PARTS OF UPPERS OF SHOES Application May 14, 1930, Serial No. 452,391

106 Claims.

This invention relates to apparatus for operating upon shoe parts and is herein illustrated as embodied in an apparatus of the general type shown in U. 8. Letters Patent No. 1,754,464, granted April 15, 1930 upon an application filed in my name for finishing the rear edges of toe tips of boots and shoes.

In apparatus of this general type there is provided mechanism for skiving the edge of a toe tip, mechanism for shrinking one side (usually the flesh side) of the tip along the edge thereof to cause the unskrunken side (usually the grain side) to curl toward the shrunken side so that the edge presents a surface which is all grain, and a punching mechanism for making a row of ornamental perforations along the finished edge. A plurality of carriers comprising clamps are successively supplied with toe tip blanks at a loading station; and these carriers are then moved in a closed path such that the blanks are presented successively to the action of the skiving, the shrinking, and the punching mechanisms, each carrier finally coming to rest temporarily at the loading station where the operator removes the finished toe tip blank and replaces it by a new one.

It is very desirable that the feeding of the blanks past the operating mechanisms be accurately controlled, and to this end, according to one feature of the invention, each carrier, as it approaches a mechanism for operating upon the blank held by the carrier, is engaged and fed past the operating mechanism by carrierfeeding means associated with that mechanism. In the illustrated construction each carrier is provided with a segmental rack, which is engaged by gears associated with the operating mechanism and these gears feed the carrier with the blank past the operating mechanism, after which the rack passes out of engagement with the gears. By thus providing feeding means for the carrier associated with the operating mechanism, the feeding of the blank past the operating mechanism may be very accurately controlled.

When a blank is subjected to the action of the shrinking mechanism wherein a stationary searing or shrinking tool drags over the blank at the edge thereof, it is desirable that the blank be gripped by its carrier close to said edge so as to leave exposed and protruding from the carrier only a narrow extent of the blank, since otherwise the drag of the shrinking tool upon the moving blank is liable at times more or less to distort and wrinkle the margin. It is also desirable that the blank be gripped close to its edge during the skiving operation. When, however, the blank is operated upon by the punching mechanism, a considerable extent of the blank must be exposed to provide for the formation of the row of ornamental perforations which are produced by the action of the punching mechanism.

Accordingly, there is provided, in accordance with another feature of the invention a carrier for presenting a blank to mechanism for operating upon the blank, said carrier being adapted to expose a given extent of the blank to the mechanism during the operation of the mechanism and to expose a difierent extent after the operation of the mechanism. In the illustrated construction the carrier comprises a clamp having two sets of clamping jaws. The main jaws engage the blank at all times at a considerable distance from the edge of the blank which is to be operated upon. The auxiliary jaws engage the blank nearer to the edge and only during the operation of the skiving and shrinking mechanism upon it, said auxiliary jaws being 'slidable, when not in engagement with the blank,

toward and. from the edge of the blank. These auxiliary jaws may thus occupy either an extended position in which they are close to the edge of the blank so that, when they are closed, only a small extent of the blank will be exposed, or they may occupy a retracted position in which a greater extent is exposed. At the loading station the auxiliary jaws are in retracted position when the operator places a blank in the clamp and closes the main jaws upon it. As the carrier moves along its path and approaches the skiving and shrinking mechanism, the auxiliary jaws are pulled out or extended and closed upon the blank with only a narrow margin of the blank exposed. They remain in this position during the skiving and shrinking operations, at the end of which they are pulled back or retracted and opened. The blank with a considerable extent of its margin exposed is then presented to the punching mechanism. In this way only a narrow extent ofthe blank is exposed during the skiving and shrinking operations and a wider extent during the punching operation.

As has been explained, each blank carrier, after it has presented a blank first to the skiving and shrinking mechanisms and then to the punching mechanism, comes to rest at the loading station. If the operator does not promptly remove the finished blank from the carrier, put a new blank in and start the carrier on its way, several carriers may come to rest between the punching mechanism and the loading station. If enough of them are allowed thus to collect so that that portion of the path of the carrier which lies between the punching mechanism and the loading station is substantially filled with stationary carriers, the rearmost of these stationary carriers may arrest a following carrier which is at the time being operated upon by the punching mechanism.

According, therefore, to another feature of the invention, means is provided for arresting a following carrier before it reaches a mechanism for operating upon the blank held by it whenever a predetermined number of carriers have been brought to rest in that part of the path of the carrier which leads away from the operating mechanism. In the illustrated construction, there is provided a member the forward end of which projects into the path of the carriers shortly after they have left the punching mechanism, this member being moved by the passing carriers temporarily into a position to arrest the next following carrier. If now a group of carriers comes to rest between the punching mechanism and the loading station and the group is large enough so that the rearmost carrier engages this member, a following carrier will be arrested before it reaches the punching mechanism.

The scarf at the rear edge of a toe tip should be made very accurately and in just the right location so that the shrinking mechanism may operate properly upon the edge of the tip; and in order to insure that this result shall be readily attained, the skiving mechanism, according to another feature of the invention is adjustable so that its cutting members may be properly positioned with respect to the edge of the blank. In the illustrated construction the whole skiving mechanism is mounted for angular adjustment on a base plate which in turn is adjustable toward and from the axis about which the toe tip carriers are rotated.

These and other features of the invention including certain details of construction and combinations of parts will be described as embodied in an illustrated apparatus and pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of an apparatus in which the present invention is embodied;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the toe tip carriers, their driving mechanism, and the table over which the operator presents the toe tip blanks one by one to the carriers at the loading station;

Fig. 4 is a plan view partly in section of the loading station and part of the mechanism for driving the carriers;

Fig. 5 is a detail in elevation of part of the mechanism which drives the carriers;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section showing the mounting of the carriers and part of the mechanism for driving them, this section being taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 7 is a detail in plan showing how the arms, which support the clamps at their outer ends, are mounted;

Fig. 8 is a section on the line 8-8 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8a is a detail in section of the lever 12? and the block 137;

Fig. 9 is a detail in elevation of part of the mechanism for connecting a carrier with and for disconnecting it from its driving mechanism;

Fig. 10 is a vertical longitudinal section through one of the toe tip clamps;

Fig. 11 is a plan view of a clamp;

Fig. 12 is a plan view of a clamp with the upper main and auxiliary jaws removed;

Fig. 13 is a perspective of the frame of a clamp;

Fig. 14 is a perspective of a portion of the jaws of the auxiliary clamp;

Fig. 15 is a section of the skiving mechanism on the line 1515 of Fig. 17;

Fig. 16 is an end elevation of the skiving and shrinking mechanism;

Fig. 16a is a detail in section of part of the mounting of the roll 189 which holds down the auxiliary jaws of the moving clamps;

Fig. 1'7 is a side elevation of the skiving mechanism;

Fig. 17a is a detail in section of the mechanism for oscillating the knife;

Fig. 18 is a plan of the skiving and shrinking mechanism;

Fig. 19 is a side elevation of the shrinking mechanism;

Fig. 20 is an end elevation of the shrinking mechanism;

Fig. 21 is a plan of the skiving and shrinking mechanism with the cover and certain other parts removed;

Fig. 22 is an elevation, partly in section of the means associated with the punching mechanism for feeding the toe tip carriers past the punching mechanism;

Fig. 23 is a front elevation of the punching mechanism;

Fig. 24 is a plan of the punching mechanism; and

Fig. 25 is a diagram of the electrical circuit for the shrinking tool.

The purpose of the illustrated machine, as has been indicated, is to skive and then shrink the margin at the rear edge of a toe tip, so as to produce a finished edge, and then to punch a row of ornamental holes along said rear edge. The skiving and shrinking operations are performed at one station, and the punching operation is performed at another station, the skiving and shrinking mechanism being indicated as a whole in Fig. 2 by the letter B and the punching mechanism by the letter C. Referring now to said figure the work 100 is presented at a loading station A over a work table 121 to one of four carriers including clamps E, F, G, I-L'which at that time is at rest in position to receive it. The clamp E, as well as the other three, is mounted to be rotated in a counterclockwise direction about a vertical post 33 (Fig. 6) and in so doing to present the tip first to the skiving and shrinking mechanism B and then to the punching mechanism '0; and finally to bring the finished piece back to the loading station A so that the operator may remove it from the clamp and replace it with a new piece. The clamps are driven in a manner presently to be described by mechanism which is separate from the mechanism which drives the skiving and shrinking mechanism B and the punching mechanism C; and as a clamp approaches the skiving and shrinking mechanism B it is disconnected from its driving mechanism and is engaged by another driving mechanism consisting of gears (to be described later) which engage a segmental rack 184 of the clamp and move the clamp at a suitable speed past the skiving and shrinking instrumentalities. After the skiving and shrinking operations have been completed, the rack 184 passes out of engagement with the gears which carried it past the skiving and shrinking tools. The clamp is then driven once more by the driving mechanism associated with the post 33 until it approaches the punching mechanism C where once more it is disconnected from the driving mechanism associated with the post 33, and its segmental rack 184 is engaged by gears associated with the punching mechanism C and fed intermittently by those gears during the punching operation. After that operation has been completed, the driving mechanism associated with the post 33 carries the clamp back to the loading station A where it comes to rest to permit the finished blank to be removed from the clamp and a new one inserted. In this manner the clamps travel round and round while the operator removes finished blanks and inserts new ones in the clamps.

In order to provide for operating upon the rear edges of toe tip blanks having different radii of curvature, the clamp sustaining and driving mechanism, as well as the punching mechanism, is adjustable on the bed of the apparatus toward and from the skiving and shrinking mechanism so as to permit the diameter of the circular path of the clamps to be increased or decreased; and the work table at the loading station is adjustable for the same purpose toward and from the axis about which the clamps rotate. It should be understood, however, that an apparatus of this type is usually custom-built for operating upon toe tips the rear edges of which have a particular radius of curvature, and is provided with clamps having their edges curved in accordance with the curvature of a particular size and shape of tip; and that the adjustments of the clamp-carrying mechanism, the punching mechanism and the table at the loading station, which are made at the factory at which the toe tips are operated upon, are of small extent to move the various elements into exactly the right positions.

The construction and mode of operation, as thus briefly described above, is similar to that of the apparatus of my prior application except that, in the apparatus of the prior application, work feeding mechanisms engage the work at the stations 13 and C and feed the work and through it the clamps past those stations, while in the present apparatus the clamps themselves are engaged and fed past these two stations.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 6 to 9, the mechanism for moving the clamps from the loading station A first to the skiving and shrinking mechanism B, then to the punching mechanism C and finally back to the loading station A will be described. This whole clamp carrying and moving mechanism, like that of my prior application, is mounted upon a base which is adjustable on the bed plate of the machine toward and from the skiving mechanism. In Fig. 6 a portion 3f this adjustable base is shown at 31; and fixed in this base is the upright spindle 33 having rotatably mounted in nested relation upon it four sleeves, 35, 37, 39, 4.1, each adapted to hold the inner end of a rod at the outer end of which a clamp is carried. These sleeves have respectively, fast to their lower ends, stepped blocks which are superposed upon one another, the lowermost block 45 resting upon the smooth middle portion of a constantly rotating ratchet wheel 47 which has ratchet teeth 49 (Fig. 8) extending around its outer margin; and it is through these teeth that the clamps are driven. The ratchet wheel 47 has a depending hub which rests upon a collar at the lower end of the spindle 33 and is driven frictionally by a sprocket Wheel 51 which is loosely mounted upon the depending hub of the ratchet wheel 47. Between the under side of the ratchet wheel and the upper side of the sprocket is a friction washer 53, and below the ratchet is a second friction washer. A metal washer 55 forced upward by spring-pressed pins 5'? holds the washer and the sprocket in the positions shown so that, when the sprocket is rotated, it will drive'the ratchet wheel 47 frictionally. The sprocket 51 (Fig. 4) is driven continuously by means of a chain 59 from a smaller sprocket 61 (also shown in Fig. 5) said sprocket having integral with it and below it a gear 63 which meshes with a gear 65, said last-named gear having integral with and below it a worm wheel 67 which is driven by a worm on the main driving shaft 245 of the machine. This driving shaft extends the whole length of the apparatus (Fig. 2) and is driven from a motor 245 Returning now to Figs. 6 and 7, each of the nested sleeves 35, 3'7, 39, 41 carries at its upper end a hub, to which is attached the inner end of an arm in the form of a rod to the outer end of each of which a clamp is fastened. These four arms are indicated in Fig. 2 at '71, 73, and 77. Inasmuch as all of these arms are mounted in substantially the same manner, the mounting of only one of them will be described in detail. The arm 71 (Fig. 6) has at its inner end integral with it a screw '79 having a hexagon wrench hold which serves not only to fasten the arm to its hub 81 but to clamp to the hub a depending arm 82 which thus becomes rigid with the horizontal arm and the hub. The hub is split and fastened to the inner sleeve 35 by a pinch bolt 83. It is through the depending arm 82 that the clamp-carrying arm 71 is driven by the ratchet 47. To this end a pawl 84 (see also Fig. 8) has a tooth 84a adapted to engage the ratchet wheel 47 at the times when the clamp is to be moved by said ratchet and to be disengaged from the ratchet during the skiving and shrinking operations, during the punching op eration and during the pause of the clamp at the loading station A. The pawl 84 is pivoted at 85 to a plate which is integral with the depending arm 82, and a spring 87 urges the pawl to swing downward about its pivot so as to causethe tooth Sea to engage the ratchet 47. In order to lift the pawl from engagement with the ratchet at the desired times so as to disconnect the clamp from the ratchet, the pawl has integral with it a trip finger 84b which is adapted to ride upon a stationary cam, presently to be described. There are three of these cams, one associated with the loading station, one with the skiving and shrinking mechanism, and one with the punching mechanism. 7

The cam at the loading station will be described later since it differs from the other two which are substantially alike. more particularly to Figs. 6 and 8, the cam associated with the punching mechanism will be described. This cam consists of two segmental plates 88, 89 adjustably held against a curved surface formed on an upstanding flange of the base 31 by a screw bolt 91 which passes through elongated slots in the plates and is threaded intothe base 31. These two cam members or plates 88, 89 form in effect a single cam, the trip finger 84b being located to run partly upon one and partly upon the other of them. The cam member 88 (Fig. 8) carries a hardened plate having an inclined face 88a at one end up which the trip finger rides to disconnect the clamp carrier from the driving ratchet 47. The trip fin- Referring now 2 ger then rides for a short distance on the tops of both the cam members, and then only upon the member 89. During this time the clamp is being advanced intermittently by feed mechanism associated with the punching mechanism. After the punching operation has been com pleted, the trip finger 84b rides oif from a shoulder 89a on the cam 89 and drops, whereupon the tooth 84a of the pawl 04 (Figs. 6 and 9) is reengaged with the rotating ratchet wheel 47, and the clamp is rotated until it reaches the loading station.

The two-part stationary cam which disconnects each clamp carrier from the driving ratchet 49 at the skiving and shrinking mechanism is shown at the right-hand side of Fig. 8, and is substantially like the two-part cam which has just been described. It consists of two curved plates 90, 91 slotted horizontally to permit a bolt 93 to clamp the plates in adjusted position. The plate 91 has at the end approached by the clamps an incline 91a up which the trip 84b of the pawl rides; and the plate has a shoulder 9011 from off which the trip drops. The purpose of making the cam in two adjustable parts is to permit the effective length of the cam to be readily varied to provide for tips having longer or shorter rear edges.

In a machine of this kind in which a plurality of clamps are being used and in which a leading clamp whose toe tip is being operated upon may at times be moving slower than the clamp which follows it, it is necessary to provide means for preventing a faster moving clamp from overtaking and colliding with the clamp which is ahead of it. Means are therefore provided for disconnecting a faster moving following clamp from the driving ratchet 47 when it approaches within a predetermined distance of the clamp ahead of it. To this end each of the depending arms, one of which (82) has been described, carries a small segmental plate, the one on the depending arm 82 being indicated at 95, adjustably fastened to the depending arm 82 by a small hook bolt 96 (Fig. 9). The down-turned end of this bolt extends into a segmental groove 97 formed in the upper face of the plate which will be termed an arresting plate since it arrests the following clamp carrier when that clamp carrier approaches near enough. The trailing end of the arresting plate 97 has a cam surface 98 and in its inner edge a small rounded notch. Inasmuch as in Fig. 8 all the clamp carriers are ahead of the one which has been described above, (the direction of rotation of the clamps being counterclockwise as indicated by the arrow) attention is directed to the clamp carrier ahead of the one which has been thus far discussed.

The depending arm of the next clamp carrier is indicated at 99 and its arresting plate at 101. At the trailing end of this arresting plate is an inclined cam surface 102; and a small rounded notch 103 is cut in its rear edge. If new the rear clamp carrier, as viewed in Fig. 8, should approach near enough to the one in front of it, an upstanding arm 840 (Fig. 9) formed integral with the pawl 84 would engage the incline 102 thereby rocking the pawl 84 to disconnect its tooth 84a. from the ratchet 47; the upper end of the arm would engage the notch 103, and all this would take place before the trailing clamp overtook and collided with the clamp ahead of it.

After the arm 840 of the trailing clamp carrier has engaged the rounded notch 103, the leading carrier, when it rotates, will draw the trailing carrier after it, the trailing carrier being still disconnected from the driving ratchet 47. In the position of parts shown in Fig. 8, that one of the four clamp carriers which is in the lead-that is farthest to the right-and which may be referred to momentarily for convenience as No. 1, is at rest at the loading station with the trip finger 10517 of its pawl 105 against a stop 107. The upwardly extending arm 1090 of the pawl 109 of carrier No. 2 has ridden up the incline at the trailing end of the arresting segment 110 and is resting in the rounded notch in the edge of the segment 110; and carrier No. 3 occupies a similar position with respect to carrier No. 2 that carrier No. 2 occupies with respect to carrier No. 1, the arresting segmental plates being located at different levels so as not to collide with one another.

The leading clamp carrier as vi wed in Fig. 8

has been disconnected from the ratchet 47 and brought to rest by its trip finger 1051) which has previously ridden upon inclined cam 111 and then encountered the stop 107. This takes place at the loading station A. The cam 111 and stop 107 are integral with a horizontal plunger 112, shown also in Fig. 4, said plunger beingv normally held by a spring 113 in the position shown, in which the cam 111 and the stop 107 lie in the path of movement of the trip fingers so that the clamp carriers will be disconnected from the driving ratchet 47 and brought to rest one by one as they reach the loading station. The plunger 112 is connected by means of a bell-crank lever 115 with a treadle rod 117 (Fig. 1) and treadle 119. Depression of the treadle withdraws the stop 107 and earn 111 from engagement with the trip finger of the clamp carrier. The trip finger then drops into engagement with the ratchet 47; and the clamp carrier is advanced to the skiving and shrinking mechanism. After the treadle has been depressed to free a clamp carrier from the stop 107, it should immediately be released so as to return the plunger with its cam 111 and stop 107 into position to bring the next clamp carrier to rest. In order to make sure that the next following carrier to the one which has been re- 1 leased shall be brought to rest even if the treadle is not released promptly, a second inclined cam 120 is provided which is integral with the cam 111. The cam 111 has an inclination to the horizontal of about 20 degrees. The cam 120 has an inclination of about 45 degrees and rises above the cam 111. If now the plunger 112 is retracted and held retracted, the cam 120 lies in the paths of the trip fingers of the clamp carriers and will act upon any trip finger to disconnect it from the ratchet 47 and to bring it to rest. When new the plunger 112 is released and returns to the position shown, that trip finger will ride down upon the cam 111 in which position its pawl will be momentarily connected with the ratchet 47, and will be moved up the remaining portion of the inclined earn 111 and against the stop 107, when its clamp carrier will be brought to rest.

At the loading station A (Figs. 2 and 4) the table 121 is located, said table having a ledge 122 1 (Fig. 4) slightly below the level of its supporting surface to receive and support the under jaws of the clamps presently to be described; and this table is provided with two adjustable stops 123, the forward edges of which form a gage or guide to determine how far the rear portion of the toe tip 100 (Fig. 2) shall project beyond the jaws of the clamp when the toe tip is placed in the clamp by the operator. After a clamp (for example the clamp E in Fig. 2) has been brought to rest front of the table 121 at the loading station A,

the operator releases the clamp manually, in a.

manner presently to be described, from the finished toe tip, removes the old tip, and places a new tip in the clamp with its rear edge against the guides 123. He then closes certain jaws of the clamp upon the tip and depresses the treadle 119 (Fig. 1) to withdraw the plunger 112 (Fig. 4) with its stop 107,- whereupon the clamp carrier is engaged by the constantly rotating ratchet 47 and rotated to the skiving and shrinking mechanism B.

In order to steady the upright spindle 33 (Fig. 6) about which the clamp carriers revolve, a stay rod 125 (Fig. 2) is fast at one end to the top of the spindle and at the other end to a stationary part of the shrinking mechanism.

It will be noted that several of the clamp carriers may be located, as the three leading ones are in Fig. 8, in that portion of their path which lies between the punching mechanism and the loading station. In that figure the rearmost clamp carrier has not yet presented its clamp to the punching mechanism while the three leading clamps have passed it. There is not room for a fourth clamp between the punching mechanism and the loading station, and consequently it is desirable that means be provided for arresting the fourth clamp carrier (the rearmost one in the figure) before its clamp reaches the punching mechanism. To this end a lever 12'! is pivoted at 129 to the base of the clamp-carrying mechanism. Said lever is shown as having been swung somewhat in a clockwise direction about this pivot by reason of the engagement of a hardened plate 99a on the depending arm 99 of the third clamp carrier with a cam 130 which is adjustably fastened to the lever 127. In Fig. 9 the plate on the depending arm 82, which corresponds to the plate 99a, is shown at 82a; and the depending arms of the other carriers have similar plates.

Normally this lever 127 is held by a compression spring 132 in a retracted position, with a z I point on its convex face in contact at about the point 133 with the stationary cam plate 89. The spring 132 bears at one end against a washer 134 carried by a rod 135 and at the other end against a stationary bracket in which the rod is slidable. The inner end of the rod has fast to it a block 137 (Fig. 8a) having at one end an upstanding flange which engages the concave face of the lever 127 and at the other end another upstanding flange, the top 138 of which is an inclined cam adapted at times to be moved into the path of the trip fingers of the clamp carriers so as to arrest a clamp carrier under certain conditions. Normally the spring 132 holds the block 137 to the left of the position shown and in a position in which its cam surface 138 lies outside the path of movement of the trip fingers. Every time a clamp carrier moves past the punching mechanism and toward the loading station, it swings the lever 127 in a clockwise direction thereby pulling the block 137 4* out into the position shown, a position in which the inclined cam surface'l38 lies in the path of movement of the trip fingers. If now, as is shown in Fig. 8, a group of clamp carriers collects at and just before reaching the loading station so that one of the clamp carriers holds the lever 127 in the position shown, a following clamp carrier will be arrested before its clamp reaches the punching mechanism. As shown in the figure, the third clamp carrier is holding the lever 127 in the position shown, and the fourth or last clamp carrier has been arrested because its trip finger 841) has run up the inclined cam surface 138.

The construction and mode of operation of the clamps will now be described. Before beginning this description, however, it will be repeated that when the rear portion of a toe tip is presented to the skiving and shrinking tools, the tip should be clamped very close to its edge; but that, when the rear portion of the tip is presented to the punching mechanism, a considerable extent of the rear portion of the tip must project from the clamp so as to permit an ornamental row of holes to be punched in the margin. Consequently each clamp is provided with two sets of jaws, one set of which will be termed the main jaws and the other of which will be termed the auxiliary jaws, said auxiliary jaws being movable into two positions, an inner position in which they do not clamp the toe tip and an outer position in which they are automatically caused to clamp the toe tip close to its projecting rear edge. At the loading station A (Fig. 2) the operator causes the main jaws to engage the tip. At this time the auxiliary jaws occupy their inner or retracted position in which a considerable extent of the rear portion of the toe tip 100 projects beyond them. When the clamp, with the toe tip engaged by the main jaws, approaches the skiving and shrinking mechanism B, the auxiliary jaws are automatically moved out and then closed upon the tip; and they remain in this position during the operation of said skiving and shrinking mechanism. At the end of the shrinking operation they are automatically freed from the toe tip and moved into their inner position so as to expose more of the margin of the toe tip. They remain in thisinner position during the punching operation and until the clamp has passed the loading station A again and once more approaches the skiving and shrinking mechanism B.

Inasmuch as the clamps are all substantially alike only one of them will be described in detail. Referring now more particularly to Figs. 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14, the rigid base or frame of the clamp is shown in Fig. 13, said base having at its rear end a split hub by means of which the clamp frame may be fastened to the outer end of one of the arms 71, 73, 75, 77 (Fig. 2) of the clamp carriers. The frame or base comprises a lower portion terminating in a fiat plate 139, which forms the lower jaw of the main clamp, and an upper forked portion having spaced arms 140, 141. The upper jaw 142 (Fig. 10) of the main clamp is pivoted at 143 between the arms 140, 141 and is normally held in raised position by a tension spring 145 which is fastened at its lower end to the base or frame and at its upper end to a pin 146 carried by the hub of the jaw. In order to swing the upper jaw down into the position shown in Fig. 10 to clamp a toe tip 100, a hand lever 147 is pivoted between two hardened blocks 149 (Fig. 11) which have lower curved faces and are received in cut-away portions 150 (best shown in Fig. 13) at the outer ends of the arms 140, 141. These two blocks 149 are fastened by screw bolts 151 to the outer ends of a forked leaf spring 152 having a shorter forked reinforcing leaf spring 153 on top of it, the two springs being fastened at their inner ends to the frame of the clamp by screws 154. The hand lever 147 (Fig. 10) has at its outer end a depending arm in which is mounted a roll 155 adapted to contact with a hardened plate 157 fastened to the jaw 142. In the position of parts shown in Fig. 10, the lever has been pushed down, and, through the roll 155, has

caused the upper jaw 142 of the main clamp to press the toe tip against the lower jaw 139, the lower jaw being formed with an upstanding rib 158 and the upper jaw with a corresponding depression so that the toe tip is firmly held. When the hand lever is raised, the upper jaw of the main clamp is released and swings up under the action of the tension spring 145 into a position in which an operator may remove the finished toe tip and put a new one into the clamp.

The auxiliary jaws 159, 160 are respectively above and below the main jaws and in effect enclose them. The lower auxiliary jaw 160 has fast to its rear end a rod 161 which is slidable in a socket formed in the base or frame of the clamp; and the upper auxiliary jaw 159 is pivoted to the lower jaw in a manner presently to be described and may be caused to slide in and out with the lower jaw. Referring now to Fig. 14, the lower jaw is shaped as therein shown having a rearwardly extending fiat stem at the rear end of which is fastened the lower leg of a U-shaped member 162, the legs of this member lying in substantially horizontal position. To the upper leg of the U-shaped member 162 are fastened two right-angled brackets 163, 164. These brackets are bored to receive pivot pins, one of which is shown at 16.5 in Fig. 14 about which are pivoted the two spaced legs of the upper jaw 159, which legs lie respectively outside of the two forks 140, 141 of the frame. Each pivot pin 165 carries a roller 167, and these rollers run respectively in guideways, one of which is shown at 169 in Fig. 13, said guideways being carried one on the outer face of the fork 140 of the frame and the other (not shown) on the outer face of the other fork. Two substantially straight spring fingers 170, 171 are provided to maintain the upper jaw 159 normally in raised position. The outer, free ends of these spring fingers engage under ledges formed on the jaw 159 (see the finger 1'20 in Fig. 14). Both fingers are mounted in substantially the same manner, the mounting of the finger 171 being shown in detail, the inner end of said finger having a loop to'receive the stem of a screw 173 and resting upon the head of a second screw 1'75.

In order to limit the upward movement of the upper auxiliary jaw 159 due to the action of these spring fingers, this jaw and the upper jaw 142 of the main clamp (Fig. 10) have a lost-motion connection comprising two screws one of which is shown at 176, said screws being threaded into the jaw 159 and having their heads received in elcngated sockets, one of which is shown at 1'7? formed in the under side of the jaw 142. This connection also causes the main jaw 142, when it is moved down into clamping position to pull the upper auxiliary jaw 159 down somewhat with it; but the upper auxiliary jaw is swung down into its clamping position, as shown in Fig. 10, by automatic means presently to be described.

It has been explained above that the lower auxiliary jaw 160 (Fig. 10) has fast to its rear end a rod 161 which slides in a socket in the frame of the clamp. In order to guide the jaw firmly in its sliding movement its fiat stem (Fig. 12) is received in a guideway formed in the underside of that part of the frame which is extended to form the lower jaw 139 of the main clamp, and is held up in said guideway by small plates 178, 179. In order to limit the extent to which the jaws 159, 160 of the auxiliary clamp may be pulled out, the stem of the lower jaw 160 (Fig. 14) has a plate 180 the forward edge of which is adapted to contact with the edge 181 (Fig. 13) of the opening in the lower member of the frame with which the lower jaw 139 of the main clamp is integral. These two edges 180, 181 also appear in Fig. 12.

When the clamp approaches the skivingand shrinking mechanism, and again when it approaches the punching mechanism, it is disconnected from its driving ratchet, as has been described, and is fed past these mechanisms by gears presently to be described. To cooperate with these gears there is adjustably fastened to the under face of the frame of the clamp by means of screws 183, the segmental rack 184 referred to above, said screws passing through slots 185 in the frame and being threaded into the rack.

Referring again to Fig. 10 the lower auxiliary jaw 160 has fastened to and depending from it a pin 186 which is engaged by stationary cams, presently to be described, associated with the skiving and shrinking mechanism. The first cam, which is encountered before the clamp has moved far enough in its path to present the toe tip to the skiving mechanism, operates to pull the auxiliary jaws out so that only a narrow width of the toe tip 100 projects beyond them. The lower jaw then runs upon a supporting roller 18'? and the upper jaw is engaged and held down by a roller 189, the two last-named rollers being associated, as will presently appear, with the shrinking mechanism. After the toe tip has passed the shrinking mechanism, the upper jaw 159 passes from beneath the roller 189 and from beneath another roller not shown in Fig. 10 and is swung up by the spring fingers 170, 171 (Fig. 14) out of engagement with the toe tip. A second stationary cam then engages the depending pin 186 and pushes the auxiliary jaws back so as to expose more of the margin of the toe tip for the punching mechanism to operate upon. In Fig. 10 the auxiliary jaws 159 and 160 are shown in their extended position and as gripping the work, while in Fig. 11 they are shown in their retracted position in which the work is gripped only by the jaws of the main clamp.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 16 and 17 wherein the skiving and shrinking mech anism is shown, the skiving mechanism comprises a vibrating knife 201 which cooperates with a stationary shear blade 202 to produce a short abrupt bevel on the rear edge of a toe tip. The shrinking mechanism comprises a plow 203, a shrinking tool 204 and a hammer 203a. In Fig. 19 the shrinking tool 294, the plow 203, and the narrow work support 330 upon which the plow is mounted are shown in end View and on a larger scale. The toe tip 100 is fed away from the observer as viewed in that figure, its edge being bent up by the plow and held against the underside of the hot tool 204 which shrinks the leather on one side and causes the unshrunken side to curl toward the shrunken side. The hammer (not shown in the figure) hammers and compacts the curled edge. These work-engaging instrumentalities will not be described further in detail since they are or may be substantially like those of the machine of my prior application which has been referred to above or like those of U. S. Letters Patent No. 1,464,504, granted August 14, 1923 upon an application filed in my name, reference being made to the patent for a detailed description. The principal difference between the old construction and the new construction herein shown is that the shrinking tool 204 and the cooperating plow 203 are considerably longer than the corresponding members of the machines of the prior application and the prior patent referred to above. The upstanding legs of the 

